It is known that certain substituted 2-arylcyclopentane diones have herbicidal and acaricidal properties (cf., for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,283,348; 4,338,122; 4,436,666; 4,526,723; 4,551,547, 4,632,698, WO 96/01798 and WO 96/03366). Moreover, compounds which are substituted in a similar manner are known; 3-hydroxy-5,5-dimethyl-2-phenylcyclopent-2-ene-1-one from the publication Micklefield et al., Tetrahedron, (1992), 7519-26 and the natural compound involutin (-)-cis-5-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-3,4-dihydroxy-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-cyclopen t-2-enone from the publication Edwards et al., J. Chem. Soc. S, (1967), 405-9. An insecticidal or acaricidal action has not been described.
However, the acaricidal and insecticidal activity and/or activity spectrum, and the compatibility of these compounds with plants, in particular crop plants, is not always satisfactory.